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Elmwood assault shakes resolve of couple who bought home after it was a murder scene

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Jane and John Woodman believed in the Elmwood neighborhood five years ago when they bought a home that had been the scene of a murder. Their confidence has been shaken by a recent assault of a 70-year-old man and other incidents.
(Michelle Gabel | mgabel@syracuse.com)

"We watched our little neighborhood improve for a while but, more recently, it has become a place we're not sure we want to stay," she wrote.

Woodman has not received a response.

Syracuse Police crime data supports their view. For the Elmwood neighborhood bounded by Kirk Park, Onondaga Creek and Elmwood Park, there were 15 aggravated assaults so far this year, compared to nine in all of 2012 and 10 in 2011. This year seven robberies have occurred, compared to six in 2012 seven in 2011. For the first time in at least three years, the neighborhood has had a murder.

Jane Woodman doesn't enter her yard without a can of pepper spray and at least one of their two dogs.

"We know it's not a completely safe place to be," she said of her neighborhood. "We also know you can ameliorate that sort of thing by being smart about it."

Shortly after moving into their house, someone entered their unlocked car in the driveway and stole their car stereo.

"We figured it was our fault because we didn't lock it," she said. "We'd hadn't lived in a city for some time. We'd been on the road in an RV."

The couple had lived in North Carolina most of their adult lives. When John Woodman retired from a management job in 2005, they bought a recreational vehicle and spent several years on the road, crisscrossing the country three times looking for a place to settle down.

No place called to them like Syracuse did, John Woodman said. He had grown up near Sacred Heart church on Syracuse's west side. Jane Woodman had grown up in southern Florida.

"I like the weather - the variety is better than constantly the same," said John Woodman. " I think the variety of ethnic food is remarkable for a city this size. And (the city) is very affordable."

But enough incidents have occurred in recent years to unsettle them.

Two years ago, eight tires on two cars of theirs were flattened with an ice pick. This year, four tires were slashed with a knife, said John Woodman.

With incidents like that and the one at the 7-Eleven, strangers can appear threatening.

"I see people I've never seen before wandering around and I'm not talking about the kids walking to Corcoran," Jane Woodman said. "I'm talking about grown men."

"It's unsettling, what's going on," said John Woodman.

He too takes a dog with him when he goes outside. He has put up bright, motion-activated outdoor lights around their property.

Considering a move, the couple has been looking at properties out of state.

"But I don't want to leave," said Jane Woodman. "I like it here. I like my neighbors. I love the area."

A regular police presence would help restore the comfort they once knew, the couple says.

"We want to make the neighborhood better. We want to make it a safe place. We want to cooperate with police," said Jane Woodman. "But if they're not around, that's hard to do."